JPH07269546A - Fixture and insert nut thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: To provide a fixture which is simple in design and manufacturing, easy to mount, strong has its screws removable and replaceable without loss of clamping force, and provide an insert nut therefor. CONSTITUTION: This insert nut 11 to be mounted on a panel member providing a screw receiving part for receiving a screw has a shank part 12 having a head part 13 at one end. The shank part 12 is constituted of uniform square external surface and includes four legs 14. As each leg 14 becomes away from the head part 13, the radial thickness is gradually increased and a hole part 16 within each leg 14 is gradually reduced in cross section. When the screw is screwed into the hole part 16, each leg 14 is made away each other so as to fix the insert nut 11 to a panel member. The insert nut 11 is preliminarily assembled into a proper screw to form a fixing tool.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fastener and its insert nut.

[0002]

2. Description of the Prior Art To facilitate the assembly of panel members, such as a plurality of metal panels, together,
It is known to mount a so-called insert nut or threaded insert in a suitable hole in a panel member to provide a threaded hole in a thin metal panel. To secure the second panel member to the first panel member, bolts or screws are used with the threaded insert attached.

To provide a high resistance to relative rotation of the insert nut and the first panel member when it is necessary to apply a high tightening torque to the screw, especially when removing and replacing the screw. is necessary.
For that purpose, it is known to form the outside of the insert nut and the hole of the member in a polygonal shape, for example, a hexagon or a quadrangle.

The problem is to provide an insert nut (for economic reasons) that is simple to design and manufacture, easy to install, sturdy and capable of screw removal and replacement without loss of holding force.

Further, conventionally, the insert nut is first attached to the first panel member by a certain operation, then the second panel member is brought, and finally the insert nut passed through the second panel member is screwed. It was necessary to screw in.

The present invention provides a fastener and its insert nut for use with a relatively thin panel member.
This insert nut consists of a torso and a radially pre-expanded head, which has a plurality of elongated legs connected to their head at their one end, Provides a substantially uniform polygonal outer surface.

The insert nut has a threaded hole extending through the head and along the length of the barrel, with a threaded surface formed on the inside of the threaded hole to separate it from the head of the leg. Also, at least a part is thickened in the radial direction, and the screw hole is limited to a small size. Therefore, the body is inserted through the corresponding polygonal hole of the panel member, its head is brought into contact with one surface of the panel member, and most of the length of the body is beyond the other surface of the panel member. When projecting and screwing a suitable screw from its head end into the threaded hole and into the above-mentioned thickened part of the threaded hole, each leg is radial to form a blind head. As they separate, the panel member is gripped between the two heads (the preformed head and the blind head) and the insert nut is secured to the panel member.

The radial thickness of each leg gradually increases towards the end of the leg remote from the root near the preformed head. A suitable thread groove is previously formed on the screw engaging surface of the screw hole, but in the case of a self-tapping screw, this thread groove is omitted.

According to a further feature of the invention, the insert nut described above is formed from a blank intermediate member having a plurality of legs circumferentially spaced by radially and axially extending slots, The radial inner surface of each leg is a threaded portion of substantially uniform diameter over its entire length, and the radial outer surface of each leg is graded from their cranial end to its distal end. Inclined outwardly, each leg being deformed radially inwardly around its end proximate to the head until the outside of the torso has a substantially uniform outside diameter over its entire length .

The present invention includes the above-mentioned insert nut,
It includes a fastener consisting of a screw and a screw that engages the thread-engaging surface of the insert nut to the extent that the insert nut fits without being forced to separate the legs significantly.

The head of the screw or the washer assembled to the screw adjacent to the head is preferably sized to substantially radially exceed the head of the insert nut, thereby providing a first hole having a hole. It can be used to secure a two panel member to a first panel member having a polygonal hole as described above. The hole of the second panel member is overlapped with the polygonal hole of the first panel member, and the head of the insert nut is allowed to enter the hole, but the head of the screw or the washer described above enters therein. The size and shape of the insert nut are not allowed. For mounting the second panel member to the first panel member, the body of the insert nut is passed through the two holes, and the head of the insert nut is attached to the first panel member. Achieved by inserting until abutting, as described above, rotating the screws to secure the insert nuts to both panel members and the second panel member to the second panel member.
The panel member is fixed.

[0012]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT A particular embodiment of the present invention will now be described by way of example with reference to the drawings. With reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, the insert nut 11 in this example is made of galvanized steel, and includes a body 12 and a head 13 radially enlarged at one end of the body 12. Head 13
Is in the form of a flange of uniform thickness and annular contour.
The torso has four elongated legs 14 each connected at one end to the head. The outer surface 15 of each leg is substantially flat, at right angles to the head 13, and at both outer surfaces 15 of adjacent legs. These four faces 15 thus provide a barrel with a substantially uniform quadrangular cross section on the outside.

The insert nut 11 has a hole 16 extending over its entire length, that is, both the head 13 and each leg 15. Inside the hole 16, a screw engagement surface is provided. In this example, a thread groove 17 is formed in advance on the screw engaging surface so that a suitable screw or bolt described later can be screwed into the thread engaging surface. However,
The thread groove 17 may be omitted by an alternative in which the thread engaging surface of the hole 16 is not provided with a screw and can be engaged by a suitable self-tapping screw.

A portion of the hole 16 located in the head 13 has a uniform diameter. However, the thickness of each leg 14 progressively increases, thereby limiting the aperture 16 to a small extent. Thus, the hole portion 19 in each leg 14 is shown in FIG.
, The diameter is reduced from the connection of the barrel 13 to the free end away from it. The outer surface of each leg 15 is substantially trapezoidal in shape and the width at its free end is greater than the width of the portion connecting to the head 13. The end surface 20 of each leg is also trapezoidal in shape and its width at its radial outer edge (where it meets the outer surface 15) is greater than its width at its radially inner edge (where it meets the end of the hole 16). Each end face 20 is slightly inclined with respect to a plane perpendicular to the hole, as shown in FIG. Each leg 14
It is separated from the adjacent leg by a taper gap 21, which is of maximum width in the head 13 and is progressively narrower in the direction of the free end where the adjacent leg makes linear contact. Has been reduced to.

The insert nut is manufactured from the unfinished intermediate material shown in FIGS. 4, 5 and 6 in which the corresponding parts of the intermediate material are designated by the reference numeral with an "a". There is. The intermediate material 11a has a head 13
It is substantially similar to the insert nut 11 in that it has a, a hole 16a, and four legs 14a. However,
In the intermediate member 11a, the hole portions 16a have a uniform diameter over their entire length, and the thread engaging surfaces of each leg are substantially evenly spaced over their entire length. Four
Each leg 14a is spaced from the next leg by a gap 21a of uniform width extending in the radial direction of hole 16a. The thickness of each leg 14a of the intermediate member 14a increases progressively with increasing distance from the head 11a (similar to the insert nut), so that the outer surface 15a of each leg 14a extends from its head end. Inclined outwardly toward the end away from. Since the intermediate member is manufactured in such a shape, it is relatively easy to form the hole 16a having a uniform cross section over the entire length thereof. The intermediate member 11a has four legs that are radially inward at their ends close to the head 13a, their outer surfaces are perpendicular to the head, and the outer surface of the body formed by each leg is its entire length. Formed into an insert nut by becoming substantially uniform over and deforming the sides of adjacent legs until they meet at the free end. The intermediate material is then galvanized (or other suitable surface treatment is applied).

The insert nut 11 shown in FIGS. 1, 2 and 3 is inserted into a suitable square hole in the panel member (where the barrel is loosely fitted) until the head 13 abuts its rear surface. And used by screwing a suitable screw into the hole. This causes the holes 16 to be re-deformed to a substantially uniform diameter, thus forcing each leg 14 to radially separate to form a blind head. The panel member is thus clamped between the two heads (head and head) of the insert nut, the screw can be unscrewed, and the installed insert nut provides a threaded hole in the panel. Insert nuts can also be used to join together two or more panel members of suitable overall thickness.

The insert nut can be preassembled with suitable screws to provide a fastener that can be handled and used as a convenient unit. Examples are shown in Figures 7 and 8. A suitable screw 22 having a shank 23 (suitably threaded to thread into the threaded groove of the insertion hole) is such that the screw is retained by the insert nut but the legs are not significantly separated. To a degree (FIG. 8), the insert nut is preassembled by screwing the other into one until it fits into the threaded surface of the leg of the insert nut. The shaft portion 23 of the screw 22 is
It has a tapered leading end as shown at 24 (FIG. 7) to assist in such engagement and to force each subsequent leg apart.

In this example, the screw 22 further comprises
It has a polygonal wrench or rotating part 25,
Adjacent to 3 is a head with an enlarged flange 30. (Flange 30 is effective as a washer integral with the head of the screw, and if desired, a separate washer could alternatively be provided). The important point is that the diameter of the screw head flange 30 is substantially larger than the diameter of the head 13 of the insert nut 11. This fastener thus releasably couples the two panel members 26, 27 together in a single mounting operation as described herein, as shown in FIGS. 7, 8, 9 and 10. Can be used for.

The first panel member 26 on the rear side is provided with a quadrangular hole 28 into which the quadrangular body 12 of the insert nut 11 is loosely fitted. The second panel member 27 on the front side is provided with a circular hole 29 having a diameter larger than the head portion 13 of the insert nut 11 but smaller than the flange 30 of the screw 22. The second panel member 27 on the front side is slightly thicker than the thickness of the insert nut 13. As shown in Figures 8 and 9, both panel members 26 and 27 are aligned with holes 28 and 29 (although they may initially be slightly spaced apart). The fastener is inserted into each of the holes 28 and 29 and protrudes to the rear side thereof, and as shown in FIG. 9, the body 12 of the insert nut enters the square hole 28, and the head 13 thereof is located on the front side. The hole 29 of the two-panel member 27 contacts the front surface of the rear-side first panel member 26.

The screw is then rotated by a suitable tool such as an air driven torque wrench applied to its hexagonal head 25. This action is to permanently attach the insert nut to the rear first panel member 26 (as described above) and, as shown in FIG.
The second panel member 27 on the front side is attached to the first panel member 26 on the rear side.
Screw the screw into the insert nut to secure the. The second panel member 27 on the front side is the insert nut 1
It can be removed from the rear first panel by removing the screw 22 from 1, and then the screw can also be screwed back into the insert nut.

The invention is not limited by the details of the examples given above.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a longitudinal sectional view of an insert nut of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a front view of the insert nut of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a side view of the insert nut of FIG.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view corresponding to FIG. 1, showing an intermediate member from which the insert nut of FIGS.

5 is a front view of the intermediate member of FIG. 4 corresponding to the insert nut of FIG.

6 is a side view of the intermediate member of FIG. 5 corresponding to the insert nut of FIG.

FIG. 7 is a fastener including an insert nut and a screw,
It is an exploded perspective view with two panel members fixed together by a fixing tool.

FIG. 8 is a side view showing two panels and a fastener about to be inserted therein.

FIG. 9 is a side view similar to FIG. 8 in which the fastener is being inserted into the panel member and is about to be attached.

FIG. 10 is a side view similar to FIG. 9 showing an attached fastener that secures two panel members together.

[Explanation of symbols]

 11 Insert Nut 12 Body 13 Head 14 Leg 15 Outer Surface of Leg 16 Hole 17 Screw Groove 18 Hole of Head 19 Hole of Leg 20 End of Leg 21 Gap 22 Screw 23 Shaft 24 Taper 25 25 Hexagonal Head 26 Rear panel member 27 Front panel member 28 Square hole 29 Circular hole 30 Flange

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Keith Denham England, Hertz, Welwin, Digswell, Old Forge Close 6

Claims (7)

[Claims] 1. An insert nut for use in a panel member comprising a body and a head pre-expanded in the radial direction, the body being connected to the head at one end thereof.
A plurality of elongated legs which together provide a substantially uniform polygonal outer surface, the bore extending through the head and along the entire length of the torso,
A thread-engaging surface is formed on the inside thereof, and at least a portion of each leg away from the head has a hole that is small limited by having a radially increased thickness, whereby the barrel When the part is inserted through the corresponding polygonal hole of the panel member, the head abuts one surface of the panel member and most of the length of the trunk part protrudes beyond the other surface of the panel member. A suitable screw is screwed from the head end of the head between the hole and the thickened portion of the leg, each leg being radially separated to form a blind head, and the panel member being the head and the blind head. An insert nut that is gripped between and thereby secured to the panel member. 2. The thickness of each leg in the radial direction is progressively increased from the root position of the leg proximate to the preformed head toward the end distant therefrom. Item 1
Insert nut described. 3. A plurality of legs circumferentially spaced by a gap extending radially and lengthwise, the radially inner thread engaging surface of each leg being substantially uniform over its entire length. Diameter, the radial outer surface of each leg is progressively inclined outward from its head end to its end remote from it, and then along the outer length of the torso The insert nut of claim 2 wherein each leg is made from an intermediate material that is deformed radially inward near its end proximate the head until substantially uniform. 4. The insert nut according to claim 1, wherein an appropriate thread groove is formed in advance on the thread engaging surface of the hole. 5. The screw engaging surface of each leg is not provided with a thread groove, but can be screwed by a suitable self-tapping screw, according to any one of claims 1 to 3. Insert nut. 6. The combination of a screw and an insert nut as set forth in claim 1, wherein the screw and the insert nut are combined with a screw that engages with a thread engaging surface of the insert nut to such an extent that the legs are not largely separated from each other. A fastener comprising the insert nut according to item 1. 7. A second panel having a head of the screw or a washer assembled to the screw adjacent to the head, which substantially projects radially beyond the head of the insert nut and thus has a hole. Can be used to attach the member to a first panel member having a polygonal hole,
The hole overlaps the polygonal hole and has a size and shape that allows the head of the insert nut to enter there but not the head of the screw or washer. Attaching the second panel member to the member, inserting the body of the insert nut through the two holes until the head of the insert nut abuts the first panel member, and then fixing the insert nut to the first panel member; The fastener according to claim 6, wherein the screw is rotated so that the first panel member holds the second panel member.